Authorities said officers shot and killed a guy who was tossing Molotov cocktails and setting cars on fire outside a police station in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Saturday afternoon.
At roughly 1:20 p.m., an officer saw a guy lighting automobiles on fire in a parking lot near a district station, according to Police Chief Estella Patterson.
The officer requested backup, and three other cops arrived, she added, and ordered the man to halt. According to Patterson, the guy proceeded to throw Molotov cocktails, eventually tossing one near a nearby cop.
“Multiple officers then discharged their weapons, and the individual was struck multiple times,” Patterson said.
According to Patterson, officers then pulled the victim away from two burning automobiles and sought to save his life. Paramedics took him to the hospital, but he died. He was not identified right away.
Patterson said that body cameras and cameras outside the police station were recording events, but she didn’t have any immediate information on the number of rounds fired or how many had struck the guy.
She expressed gratitude to firemen for coming fast and putting out the fire.
Although the chief did not go into detail about the cars that were destroyed, news images showed a police vehicle being taken away with what seemed to be a scorched and extensively damaged engine bay.
The police chief stated that an investigation is underway and that further information about the incident would be disclosed in the following days in a report.
According to Patterson, the FBI was alerted in accordance with department procedure, and the investigation’s results would be presented to the Wake County district attorney.
The incident occurred in Raleigh, North Carolina’s capital city, near the department’s southeast district station. After that, police, fire, and other emergency vehicles filled the area, and the route remained closed for many hours while the investigation was ongoing.
